Aerodynamic control surface movement monitoring system for aircraft

ABSTRACT

Actuator systems and methods for controlling aerodynamic control surfaces of aircraft including a first actuator receiving a first input and a first linear translation element that moves based thereon, the first linear translation element operably connected to a first portion of the control surface. A first sensor assembly is disposed relative to the first actuator that generates an output based on a displacement of the first translation element. A second actuator receives a second input and a second linear translation element moves based on the second input, the second linear translation element operably connected to a second portion of the control surface. A second sensor assembly is disposed relative to the second actuator that generates a second sensor output based on a displacement of the second translation element. A controller generates the inputs and receives the sensor outputs to determine if an error condition exists for the system.

BACKGROUND

Modern aircraft often use a variety of high lift leading and trailingedge devices to improve high angle of attack performance during variousphases of flight, for example, takeoff and landing. One such device is atrailing edge flap. Current trailing edge flaps generally have a stowedposition in which the flap forms a portion of a trailing edge of a wing,and one or more deployed positions in which the flap extends forward anddown to increase the camber and/or plan form area of the wing. Thestowed position is generally associated with low drag at low angles ofattack and can be suitable for cruise and other low angle of attackoperations. The extended position(s) is/are generally associated withimproved air flow characteristics over the aircraft's wing at higherangles of attack.

Proper extension and retraction of such flaps is important for controlof the aircraft during different maneuvers. As such, it is conventionalto include multiple feedback systems to monitor flap deployment andretraction. For example, sensor systems may monitor absolute flapposition, flap skew position and detection of a jam or disconnectedactuator.

In general, such systems can include a control unit that causes a maindrive unit to produce rotation of a shaft. This rotation can then beconverted to flap extension in known manners such as by use of a ballscrew. In such systems, each flap typically includes two actuators, onefor each side of the flap. If the two actuators do not extend two sidesof the flap the same amount, the flap experiences skew. Further, in somecases, the actuator may not be working effectively and determination ofsuch, as well as skew, may be beneficial.

SUMMARY

According to some embodiments, actuator systems for controllingaerodynamic control surfaces of an aircraft are provided. The systemsinclude a first actuator receiving a first actuator input and a firstlinear translation element that moves based on the first actuator input,the first linear translation element operably connected to a firstportion of the aerodynamic control surface to move the first portion ofthe aerodynamic control surface, a first sensor assembly disposedrelative to the first actuator that generates a first sensor outputbased on a displacement of the first linear translation element, asecond actuator receiving a second actuator input and a second lineartranslation element that moves based on the second actuator input, thesecond linear translation element operably connected to a second portionof the aerodynamic control surface to move the second portion of theaerodynamic control surface, a second sensor assembly disposed relativeto the second actuator that generates a second sensor output based on adisplacement of the second linear translation element, and a controllerthat generates the first and second actuator inputs and receives thefirst and second sensor outputs and determines if an error conditionexists for the system based on the first and second sensor outputs.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first and second actuators are electromagnetic actuators.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the aerodynamic control surface is a flap or slat.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the error condition is a skew condition of the aerodynamic controlsurface and is determined by the controller when the sensors outputsfrom the first and second sensor assemblies do not match.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may include adrive unit operably connected to the controller configured to drive adrive shaft that is operably connected to the first and secondactuators, the drive unit causing the drive shaft to rotate based onsignals received from the controller.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the error condition is an actuator malfunction and is determined bythe controller when at least one of the first actuator input and thesecond actuator input does not match a respective first or second sensoroutput.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first linear translation element is a magnetic shaft formedfrom alternating magnetic elements that is driven by an electromagneticstator.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first sensor assembly comprises a first magnetic sensor and asecond magnetic sensor, wherein the first and second magnetic sensorsare positioned relative to the first linear translation element todetect the alternating magnetic elements of the first linear translationelement.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first and second magnetic sensors are positioned with an axialoffset relative to the first linear translation element.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the magnetic sensors are Hall Effect sensors.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first linear translation element is a threaded ball screw shaftthat is driven by a ball nut.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first sensor assembly comprises a first optical sensor and asecond optical sensor, wherein the first and second optical sensors arepositioned relative to the first linear translation element to detectthe threads of the first linear translation element.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first and second optical sensors are positioned with acircumferential offset relative to the first linear translation element.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the actuator systems may includethat the first sensor assembly comprises at least two sensing elementspositioned relative to the linear translation element and configured todetect a position or movement of the linear translation element.

According to some embodiments, methods of controlling and monitoringaerodynamic control surfaces of an aircraft are provided. The methodsinclude sending an first actuator input from a controller to a firstactuator to drive a movement of a first linear translation element thatis operably connected to a first portion of the aerodynamic controlsurface, sending an second actuator input from the controller to asecond actuator to drive a movement of a second linear translationelement that is operably connected to a second portion of theaerodynamic control surface, generating a first sensor output with afirst sensor assembly disposed relative to the first actuator, the firstsensor output being based an amount of linear motion of the first lineartranslation element, generating a second sensor output with a secondsensor assembly disposed relative to the second actuator, the secondsensor output being based an amount of linear motion of the secondlinear translation element, comparing expected sensor outputs to thefirst and second sensor outputs using the controller to determine if anerror condition exists, and generating an error indication when theerror condition exists.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the methods may include that thefirst and second actuators are electromagnetic actuators, the methodfurther comprising detecting variations in magnetic field that correlateto linear motion of the first and second linear translation elements.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the methods may include that theerror condition is at least one of (i) a skew condition of theaerodynamic control surface and is determined by the controller when thesensors outputs from the first and second sensor assemblies do not matchor (ii) an actuator malfunction and is determined by the controller whenat least one of the first actuator input and the second actuator inputdoes not match a respective first or second sensor output.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the methods may include that thefirst linear translation element is a magnetic shaft formed fromalternating magnetic elements that is driven by an electromagneticstator, the method further comprising further comprising detectingvariations in magnetic field that correlate to linear motion of thefirst and second linear translation elements.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the methods may include that thefirst sensor assembly comprises a first magnetic sensor and a secondmagnetic sensor, wherein the first and second magnetic sensors are atleast one of (i) positioned relative to the first linear translationelement to detect the alternating magnetic elements of the first lineartranslation element or (ii) positioned with an axial offset relative tothe first linear translation element.

In addition to one or more of the features described above, or as analternative, further embodiments of the methods may include detecting acharacteristic of the first and second linear translation elements andcorrelating the detected characteristics to linear motion of therespective first and second linear translation elements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter which is regarded as the present disclosure isparticularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at theconclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other features, andadvantages of the present disclosure are apparent from the followingdetailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawingsin which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective schematic illustration of an aircraft thatincludes moveable control surfaces;

FIG. 2 is schematic illustration of an actuator control system thatincludes one or more actuators having an internal position sensordisposed therein;

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective illustration of a simplified exampleof an actuator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of a sensor assembly of an actuatorin accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of another sensor assembly of anactuator in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Disclosed herein are aerodynamic control surface movement monitoringsystems (also referred to as an actuator monitoring systems herein) thatprovide feedback for an aircraft flap, slat, or other movableaerodynamic control surface. The disclosed systems provide a solutionfor: positional location (i.e. feedback of the control surfaceposition); skew position feedback of the control surface; and failuredetection for a jam or failure of a portion of an actuation systemconfigured to move the aerodynamic control surface. The systemsdisclosed, by combining multiple functions, allow part count reduction,weight reduction, and reliability improvement compared to conventionalsystems.

In one embodiment, a sensor assembly is disposed in or relative to oneor more of actuators that are controlled to move an aerodynamic controlsurface of an aircraft. The sensor assembly can detect a movement orposition of a linear translation element of the actuator to measuremovement and/or position of the aerodynamic control surface. The sensorassembly can include sensors that are selected based on a configurationof the linear translation element. For example, in some embodiments, amagnetic shaft is selected for the linear translation element and thesensor assembly includes magnetic sensors, such as Hall Effect sensors.In other embodiments, the linear translation element can be a ballscrew, and optical or other position/distance sensors can be used tomonitor the movement/position of the linear translation element. As theactuator delivers mechanical motion to the aerodynamic control surface,the sensor assembly provides a sensor output signal based on detectedmovement of the linear translation element and, consequently, movementof the aerodynamic control surface. Detection of a jam or disconnectedactuator is established when sensor output is not proportional toactuator input or a mismatch is detected between two different sensoroutputs. As will be understood, the input can be determined by a controlsystem that drives an input shaft or electromagnetic actuators as morefully described below.

The systems described herein can include two or more of theactuator/sensor combinations for each aerodynamic control surface. Insome embodiments, a measurement of travel distance of a lineartranslation element of an actuator is used to measure control surfaceposition and/or skew.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an aircraft 100, illustrated as acommercial aircraft, having aircraft engines 102. The aircraft 100 canembody aspects of the teachings of this disclosure. The aircraft 100, asshown, includes two wings 104 with wing lift systems that each includesone or more aerodynamic control surfaces. As shown, the aerodynamiccontrol surfaces include slats 106 and one or more flaps 108 located onthe wings 104. The slats 106 are located on a leading edge of the wings104 and the flaps 108 are located on a trailing edge of the wings 104.Further, as shown, the aerodynamic control surfaces include slats and/orflaps 110 located on a tail 112 of the aircraft 100. The term “controlsurface” as used herein can refer to slats, flaps, and/or othercontrollable surfaces that are operated to enable flight control of theaircraft 100. Although description herein will be discussed with respectto the control surfaces 106, 108 located on the wings 104, those ofskill in the art will appreciate that embodiments of the presentdisclosure can be applied to operation of the control surfaces 110located on the tail 112 of the aircraft 100. The control surfaces 106,108, 110 can be driven by one or more actuators that are operablyconnected to the respective control surfaces 106, 108, 110.

Traditional wing lift systems interconnect all control actuators on bothwings of an aircraft with torque tubes and a central power distributionunit (PDU). This system of actuators traditionally relies on externalsensors connected directly to the main driveline to track the drivelinerevolutions which correlate to actuator and wing position. Thisinterconnected system has been replaced on some applications withstand-alone electromechanical actuators (EMA), and thus interconnectionis not achieved. Without such interconnection, driveline-based positiontracking systems cannot function. Accordingly, it may be advantageous tohave position tracking systems that can be employed eitherinterconnected or non-interconnected systems with a high level ofaccuracy.

Alternatively to driveline revolution tracking in an interconnectedsystem, linear position tracking can be employed due to the nature ofmagnetized hardware used for EMAs. Magnetic-based sensors, such as HallEffect sensors, can be placed perpendicularly to an actuator shaft, suchas a translating cylinder such that as the cylinder translates linearly.Magnetized stripes on the linear cylinder create an alternatingpositive-negative signal that can be detected by the Hall Effect sensorsand thus the position of the actuator shaft can be measured.

FIG. 2 illustrates, generally, a system 214 that is operable and/orcontrollable to control and monitor the location of one or more controlsurfaces of an aircraft (e.g., control surfaces 106, 108, 110). Asillustrated in FIG. 2, a plurality of control surfaces 216 a . . . 216 nare illustrated and controlled by system 214. Those of skill in the artwill appreciate that any number of control surfaces can be controlledand monitored by the system 214, although only two control surfaces 216a, 216 n are illustrated. The control surfaces 216 a, 216 n can be flapsand/or slats, such as slats 106 and flaps 108 illustrated in in FIG. 1and/or control surfaces 110 located on the tail 112 of the aircraft 100.

The system 214 includes a controller 218. The controller 218 isconfigured to issue control commands to a drive unit 220. The commandscan include commands to cause the drive unit 220 to rotate an optionaldrive shaft 222 in order to move one or more of the control surfaces 216a, 216 n in a desired direction or motion. For example, the drive shaft222 can be rotated to cause one or more of the control surfaces to movein a direction in or out as generally indicated by arrow A. To convertthe rotary motion of the drive shaft 222 into linear motion to move thecontrol surfaces 216 a, 216 n, one or more actuator units 224 a . . .224 n are provided, with each control surface 216 a . . . 216 n having adedicated and/or respective actuator unit 224 a . . . 224 n. As shown,the drive shaft 222 is schematically shown as interconnecting thevarious actuators 226, 228 and the various actuator unit 224 a . . . 224n. However, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the variousactuators and/or actuator units may be independent and thus notinterconnected.

Each actuator unit 224 a . . . 224 n, as shown, includes two actuatorsoperably connected to the respective control surface 216 a . . . 216 n.For example, a first actuator unit 224 a includes first and secondactuators 226, 228. The first actuator 226 includes a first actuatordrive unit 230 and a first linear translation element 232. The firstactuator drive unit 230 receives rotatory motion from the drive shaft222 and causes the first linear translation element 232 to move linearlyin a direction shown generally by arrow A. Similarly, the secondactuator 228 includes a second actuator drive unit 234 and a secondlinear translation element 236. The second actuator drive unit 234 alsoreceives rotatory motion from the drive shaft 222 and causes the secondlinear translation element 236 to move linearly in the direction showngenerally by arrow A. The linear translation elements 232, 236 areoperably connected to respective portions of the first control surface216 a. Thus, movement of the first linear translation element 232 causesa first portion 217 of the first control surface 216 a to move andmovement of the second linear translation element 236 causes a secondportion 219 of the first control surface 216 a to move. The first andsecond portions 217, 219 of the first control surface 216 a may be endsor sides of the control surface and movement thereof adjusts position,angle, tilt, etc. of the control surface 216 a to enable flight of anaircraft.

In one non-limiting embodiment, the linear translation elements 232, 236are ball screws driven by a ball nut as will be appreciated by those ofskill in the art. In another non-limiting embodiment, the lineartranslation elements 232, 236 are hydraulic drive shafts. In anothernon-limiting embodiment, the linear translation elements 232, 236 aremagnetic shafts driven by an electromagnetic stator as will beappreciated by those of skill in the art. In each of the variousembodiments and/or configurations, the respective actuator drive unit234 is appropriately configured, as will be appreciated by those ofskill in the art.

Each actuator 230, 234 includes a respective sensor assembly 238, 240positioned relative thereto, and in some embodiments, contained at leastpartially therein. The actuators 230, 234 can be EMAs and the lineartranslation elements 232, 236 are magnetized linear cylinders withalternating magnetization. In such configurations, the sensor assemblies238, 240 can include magnetic sensors, such as Hall Effect sensors, thatmeasure a linear displacement of the linear translation elements 232,236, respectively. In other embodiments, the sensors can be opticalsensors that detect a property of a respective linear translationelement, as described herein.

FIG. 3 illustrates a simplified version of actuator 326 that may be anyactuator shown in FIG. 2 (e.g., actuators 226, 228). The actuator 326,as shown, is operably connected to a drive shaft 322. The drive shaft322 can be controlled by a controller and drive unit, as describedabove. Rotation of the drive shaft 322 causes the linear translator 332to move in the direction shown by arrow A in a known manner. The lineartranslator 332 is illustrated as being part of a ball screw 342,although other configurations are possible, as noted above. To that end,the actuator 326 can include gears or other mechanical linkages oroperable connections 344 to the drive shaft 322. In FIG. 3, such a gearis shown as element 344 and includes an outer ball screw housing 346that surrounds some or all of the linear translator 332. The skilledartisan shall recognize that the term ball screw includes the outer ballscrew housing 346 and the linear translator 332. Although shown as aball screw configurations, various other configurations, includingmagnetic arrangements as shown in FIG. 4, can be employed withoutdeparting from the scope of the present disclosure.

Referring back now to FIG. 2, it shall be understood that each of theactuators 226, 228 could be the same or similar to that shown in FIG. 3or FIG. 4, described below, and, as such, the sensor assemblies 238, 240and/or each actuator 230, 228 can measure the linear translation of thetranslating elements 232, 236. The output of the sensor assemblies 238,240, in accordance with some embodiments, is a voltage or otherelectrical measurement (e.g. current) and can be provided as a signaltransmitted to the controller 218, as schematically shown in FIG. 2.

As stated above, the controller 218 issues commands to cause the driveunit 220 to rotate drive shaft 222. The rotation of the drive shaft 222causes linear motion of the linear translating elements 232, 236. In anEMA configuration, the controller 218 can issue commands to eachseparate EMA such that they operate in tandem to achieve a desiredresult (e.g., a desired extension or movement of an aerodynamic controlsurface).

The amount of translation (e.g., a voltage output measured by the sensorassemblies 238, 240) should be proportion to the amount of rotation ofthe drive shaft 222 in a properly operating actuator 226, 228. Thus, thecontroller 218 need only compare the amount of expected sensor outputfor a given command signal from the drive unit 220 to determine ifeither of the actuators 226, 228 is not operating properly.

If the outputs of both sensor assemblies 238, 240 fail to match theexpected positions based on the actuator inputs then the system 214(e.g., controller 218) determines that a jam or other actuatormalfunction has occurred. If the output of the two sensor assemblies238, 240 does not match each other, then the controller 218 attributessuch mismatch to a skew condition. Additionally, the output of the twosensor assemblies 238, 240 provides positional location information ofthe respective control surface 216 a.

Skew and actuator malfunction can generally be referred to as “errorconditions” herein. Embodiments of the present disclosure are directedto determining such error conditions. The error conditions can bedetermined by comparisons between sensor outputs and an expected outputbased on what the controller 218 instructs to the drive unit 220. Forinstance, the controller 218 can instruct the drive unit 220 move thecontrol surface 216 a to a fully extended position. Upon receiving suchcomment, the drive unit 220 can rotate the drive shaft 222 tenrotations, in an interconnected embodiment. In a non-interconnectedembodiment, the controller 218 can instruct a plurality of EMAs toextend respective linear translation elements a particular distance(e.g., number of rotations, etc.). The rotations or other actuationmovement will cause the respective linear translation element 232, 236motion that is proportional to the rotation. Such movement of the lineartranslation elements 232, 236 is measured by the respective sensorassemblies 238, 240. The sensor assemblies 238, 240 will transmit orotherwise communicate a sensor output to the controller 218, whereuponthe controller 218 will make one or more comparison calculations (e.g.,compared to instructions/commands (e.g., failure), compared to eachother (e.g., skew event)). The comparison made by the controller 218 candetermine that an actuator jam or other failure exists in one or moreactuator units. In such a case, the control unit 218 can generate analert, alarm, or other notification (referred to herein as an errorindication) that can be provided on a screen or other output device toan operator of the aircraft. Similarly, when the sensor outputs receivedfrom the sensor assemblies 238, 240 do not match, a control surface 216a skew condition may be determined and an error indication can begenerated and provided to an operator of the aircraft.

An embodiment of a sensor assembly 448 is schematically shown in FIG. 4.In some embodiments, the sensor assembly 448 can be part of an actuatorunit, and more particularly, particularly part of an actuator (e.g.,actuators 226, 228). The sensor assembly 448 includes a lineartranslation element 432 that is driven by an actuator drive unit 430. Inthis embodiment, the linear translation element 432 is a magnetic shaftformed from alternating magnetic elements 450, 452. In thisconfiguration, the actuator drive unit 430 is an electromagnetic statorthat can be controlled to drive the magnetic linear translation element432 in the direction shown by arrow A in a known manner. The actuatordrive unit 430 can receiving a current which passes through the statorand induces the magnetic linear translation element 432 to move, as willbe appreciated by those of skill in the art.

The sensor assembly 448 further includes sensing elements 454 a, 454 b.As shown, the sensing elements 454 a, 454 b are offset from each otheralong an axis of the linear translation element 432 (e.g., in themovement direction A). Such offset, as used herein, will be referred toas an axial offset. As such, a first axis 456 a of a first sensingelement 454 a is axially offset from a second axis 456 b of a secondsensing element 456 b. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, the sensing elements454 a, 454 b are Hall Effect sensors or other magnetic field sensors.

In such an embodiment, the discrete nature of alternatingpositive-negative signals of the alternating magnetic elements 450, 452of the linear translation element 432 can be detected by a multitude ofmagnetic sensors to achieve a desired positional accuracy. Thus, themovement and position of the linear translation element 432 can beaccurately measured. The sensing elements 454 a, 454 b are incommunication with a controller to provide position and/or movementfeedback related to actual movement of the linear translation element432, which can then be compared to command information, as describedabove, to determine an operational status. In some embodiments, at leasttwo Hall Effect sensors should be used which are offset along the lineardirection of the linear translation element to track directional travel.Although shown and described as having two sensing elements 454 a, 454b, additional fidelity may be achieved having additional sensingelements that can be placed at varying spacing to achieve a desiredapplication-specific linear position accuracy.

In operation, as the linear translation element 432 is driven by theactuator drive unit 430, the alternating magnetic elements 450, 452 willbe detected by each of the sensing elements 454 a, 454 b. By monitoringthe signals of the two sensing elements 454 a, 454 b, a direction ofmotion can be detected (or any motion at all). That is, as thealternating magnetic elements 450, 452 move relative to the sensingelements 454 a, 454 b, a signal strength will be monitored by acontroller, with the signal strength being, in this embodiment, adetected magnetic field strength and polarity.

Turning to FIG. 5, an alternative configuration of a sensor assembly 548in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Inthe embodiment of FIG. 5, the sensor assembly 548 includes an actuatordrive unit 530 that drives a linear translation element 532, which asshown is a ball screw configuration. A plurality of sensing elements 554a . . . 554 e are shown positioned relative to the linear translationelement 532. Each of the sensing elements 554 a . . . 554 e can bepositioned at the same axial position with respect to a movementdirection A of the linear translation element 532. The sensing elements554 a . . . 554 e, however, can be offset circumferentially relative toeach other (referred to herein as circumferentially offset), such thatthe threads of the linear translation element 532 detected by thesensing elements 554 a . . . 554 e can provide movement information. Inthis embodiment, the sensing elements 554 a . . . 554 e can be opticalsensors (e.g., laser), magnetic sensors (e.g., Hall Effect sensor),acoustic sensors, and/or other type of sensor that can determine adistance between the respective sensing element 554 a . . . 554 e and asurface of the linear translation element 532. In some embodiments, thethreads of the linear translation element can be magnetized, such thatthe grooves and peaks have different magnetization, and thus a similarembodiment to that described above with respect to FIG. 4 may beemployed.

While the present disclosure has been described in detail in connectionwith only a limited number of embodiments, it should be readilyunderstood that the present disclosure is not limited to such disclosedembodiments. Rather, the present disclosure can be modified toincorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions orequivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which arecommensurate with the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.Additionally, while various embodiments of the present disclosure havebeen described, it is to be understood that aspects of the presentdisclosure may include only some of the described embodiments.Accordingly, the present disclosure is not to be seen as limited by theforegoing description, but is only limited by the scope of the appendedclaims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An actuator system for controlling anaerodynamic control surface of an aircraft, the system comprising: afirst actuator receiving a first actuator input and a first lineartranslation element that moves based on the first actuator input, thefirst linear translation element operably connected to a first portionof the aerodynamic control surface to move the first portion of theaerodynamic control surface; a first sensor assembly disposed relativeto the first actuator that generates a first sensor output based on adisplacement of the first linear translation element; a second actuatorreceiving a second actuator input and a second linear translationelement that moves based on the second actuator input, the second lineartranslation element operably connected to a second portion of theaerodynamic control surface to move the second portion of theaerodynamic control surface; a second sensor assembly disposed relativeto the second actuator that generates a second sensor output based on adisplacement of the second linear translation element; and a controllerthat generates the first and second actuator inputs and receives thefirst and second sensor outputs and determines if an error conditionexists for the system based on the first and second sensor outputswherein the first linear translation element is a magnetic shaft formedfrom alternating magnetic elements that is driven by an electromagneticstator, wherein the first sensor assembly comprises a first magneticsensor and a second magnetic sensor, wherein the first and secondmagnetic sensors are positioned relative to the first linear translationelement to detect the alternating magnetic elements of the first lineartranslation element and the first and second magnetic sensors arepositioned with an axial offset relative to the first linear translationelement.
 2. The actuator system of claim 1, wherein the first and secondactuators are electromagnetic actuators.
 3. The actuator system of claim1, wherein the aerodynamic control surface is a flap or slat.
 4. Theactuator system of claim 1, wherein the error condition is a skewcondition of the aerodynamic control surface and is determined by thecontroller when the sensors outputs from the first and second sensorassemblies do not match.
 5. The actuator system of claim 1, furthercomprising a drive unit operably connected to the controller configuredto drive a drive shaft that is operably connected to the first andsecond actuators, the drive unit causing the drive shaft to rotate basedon signals received from the controller.
 6. The actuator system of claim1, wherein the error condition is an actuator malfunction and isdetermined by the controller when at least one of the first actuatorinput and the second actuator input does not match a respective first orsecond sensor output.
 7. The actuator system of claim 1, wherein themagnetic sensors are Hall Effect sensors.
 8. The actuator system ofclaim 1, wherein the first sensor assembly comprises at least twosensing elements positioned relative to the linear translation elementand configured to detect a position or movement of the lineartranslation element.
 9. A method of controlling and monitoring anaerodynamic control surface of an aircraft, the method comprising:sending an first actuator input from a controller to a first actuator todrive a movement of a first linear translation element that is operablyconnected to a first portion of the aerodynamic control surface; sendingan second actuator input from the controller to a second actuator todrive a movement of a second linear translation element that is operablyconnected to a second portion of the aerodynamic control surface;generating a first sensor output with a first sensor assembly disposedrelative to the first actuator, the first sensor output being based anamount of linear motion of the first linear translation element;generating a second sensor output with a second sensor assembly disposedrelative to the second actuator, the second sensor output being based anamount of linear motion of the second linear translation element;comparing expected sensor outputs to the first and second sensor outputsusing the controller to determine if an error condition exists; andgenerating an error indication when the error condition exists, whereinthe first linear translation element is a magnetic shaft formed fromalternating magnetic elements that is driven by an electromagneticstator, the method further comprising detecting variations in magneticfield that correlate to linear motion of the first and second lineartranslation elements, and wherein the first sensor assembly comprises afirst magnetic sensor and a second magnetic sensor, wherein the firstand second magnetic sensors are at least one of (i) positioned relativeto the first linear translation element to detect the alternatingmagnetic elements of the first linear translation element or (ii)positioned with an axial offset relative to the first linear translationelement.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first and secondactuators are electromagnetic actuators, the method further comprisingdetecting variations in magnetic field that correlate to linear motionof the first and second linear translation elements.
 11. The method ofclaim 9, wherein the error condition is at least one of (i) a skewcondition of the aerodynamic control surface and is determined by thecontroller when the sensors outputs from the first and second sensorassemblies do not match or (ii) an actuator malfunction and isdetermined by the controller when at least one of the first actuatorinput and the second actuator input does not match a respective first orsecond sensor output.
 12. The method of claim 9, further comprisingdetecting a characteristic ofthe first and second linear translationelements and correlating the detected characteristics to linear motionof the respective first and second linear translation elements.
 13. Anactuator system for controlling an aerodynamic control surface of anaircraft, the system comprising: a first actuator receiving a firstactuator input and a first linear translation element that moves basedon the first actuator input, the first linear translation elementoperably connected to a first portion of the aerodynamic control surfaceto move the first portion of the aerodynamic control surface; a firstsensor assembly disposed relative to the first actuator that generates afirst sensor output based on a displacement of the first lineartranslation element; a second actuator receiving a second actuator inputand a second linear translation element that moves based on the secondactuator input, the second linear translation element operably connectedto a second portion of the aerodynamic control surface to move thesecond portion of the aerodynamic control surface; a second sensorassembly disposed relative to the second actuator that generates asecond sensor output based on a displacement of the second lineartranslation element; and a controller that generates the first andsecond actuator inputs and receives the first and second sensor outputsand determines if an error condition exists for the system based on thefirst and second sensor outputs, wherein the first linear translationelement is a threaded ball screw shaft that is driven by a ball nut, andwherein the first sensor assembly comprises a first optical sensor and asecond optical sensor, wherein the first and second optical sensors arepositioned relative to the first linear translation element to detectthe threads of the first linear translation element.
 14. The actuatorsystem of claim 13, wherein the first and second optical sensors arepositioned with a circumferential offset relative to the first lineartranslation element.
 15. The actuator system of claim 13, wherein theaerodynamic control surface is a flap or slat.
 16. The actuator systemof claim 13, wherein the error condition is a skew condition of theaerodynamic control surface and is determined by the controller when thesensors outputs from the first and second sensor assemblies do notmatch.
 17. The actuator system of claim 13, further comprising a driveunit operably connected to the controller configured to drive a driveshaft that is operably connected to the first and second actuators, thedrive unit causing the drive shaft to rotate based on signals receivedfrom the controller.
 18. The actuator system of claim 13, wherein theerror condition is an actuator malfunction and is determined by thecontroller when at least one of the first actuator input and the secondactuator input does not match a respective first or second sensoroutput.